Windows NT 3.1

Windows NT 3.1

A version of the Windows NT operating system
Screenshot of Windows NT 3.1
Developer	Microsoft
Source model	Closed-source
General availability	July 27, 1993; 23 years ago (1993-07-27)
Latest release	Service Pack 3 (3.1.528) / October 29, 1994; 22 years ago (1994-10-29)
Platforms	IA-32, Alpha, MIPS
Kernel type	Hybrid
License	Commercial software
Succeeded by	Windows NT 3.5 (1994)
Support status
Unsupported as of December 31, 2000

Windows NT 3.1 is a 32-bit operating system developed by Microsoft, and released on July 27, 1993. It was the first published edition of the Windows NT series of operating systems.

At the time of Windows NT's release, Microsoft's Windows 3.1 desktop environment had established brand recognition and market share; but Windows 3.1 relied on the DOS operating system for essential functions, and it had a constrictive 16-bit architecture. Windows NT, however, was a complete, 32-bit operating system that retained a desktop environment familiar to Windows 3.1 users.

By extending the Windows brand and beginning Windows NT at version 3.1, Microsoft implied that consumers should expect a familiar user experience. The name Windows NT ("New Technology") advertized that this was a re-engineered version of Windows.

Windows NT began as a rewrite of the OS/2 operating system, which Microsoft had co-developed with IBM in the 1980s. For several reasons, including the market success of Windows 3.0 in 1990, Microsoft decided to advance Windows rather than OS/2. They relinquished their OS/2 development responsibilities to IBM, and forked their work on OS/2 v3.0 into a competing operating system.

In 1993, Microsoft marketed two products in the first-generation Windows NT product line: Windows NT 3.1 for workstations, and Windows NT 3.1 Advanced Server for servers. When these premiered, their sales were limited by high system requirements, and a general lack of 32-bit applications to take advantage of the OS's data processing capabilities.